Cognitive Science 170
Natural and Artificial Symbol-Using Systems
Name: _________________________
SHORT PAPER #2:
Question: (2-4 pages). Hand in a stapled-together printout on
real paper.
- 1. Imagine that one base pair in the protein-coding part of the
DNA sequence (not an intron, a promoter, or an enhancer) of a cell has
been changed into a different base pair. Trace the effects of this
change into the metabolic network of the cell in the following way:
briefly describe how the changed base pair might effect transcription
and translation (the molecular biological senses of these words),
and then protein folding, and finally, function.
You must outline all the major stages by which a one-dimensional sequence
of DNA symbol segments (bases) is transformed into a metabolic network
of chemical reactions controlled by proteins and tell me a little
bit about how and why proteins fold and how they function. Since you
cannot possibly summarize all of modern molecular biology in
2 to 4 pages, and since I have not told you which gene was damaged,
concentrate on the architecture of molecular information transfer
and interpretation as you describe the major stages and parts
and forces that are involved in each stage. You can ignore the details
of transcriptional regulation. Say where tRNA's and ribosomes
come from.
due by Mon, 11/13/06